this is bbc news. welcome if you're watching here in the uk or around the globe. bells tolling the bells toll in st peter's square as the vatican announces the former pope, benedict xvi, has died at the age of 95 pope benedict led the catholic church for nearly eight years until, in 2013, he became the first pope in 600 years to resign. he was a kind, considerate, highly intelligent and sensitive man. and it was always a pleasure to be in his company even if issues that were difficult had to be talked about. this is the scene live in vatican city, where the former pope lived.

his funeral will be held on the 5th ofjanuary and will be presided over by pope francis. world health officials call on beijing to share accurate covid data, as england becomes the latest country to control arrivals from china. queen guitarist brian may and members of england's women's football team are among those celebrated in the uk's new year's honours list. the former pope, benedict xvi, has died at the age of 95. the vatican says he passed away this morning at his residence there. his health had been worsening in recent weeks. benedict served as head of the roman catholic church for eight years until 2013,

when he became the first pope in 600 years to announce his retirement. he was german by birth, and was known for his conservative theological outlook. bells tolling this was the moment his death was confirmed in rome. you can hear the bells ringing, in st peter's square in vatican city. the vatican says pope benedict's body will lie in state from monday in st peter's basilica and that pope francis will lead the funeral on january the 5th. here's our religon editor, aleem maqbool. cerebral by character, benedict was a prolific author and more at home with scholarship than pastoral work. he led the world's catholics for eight years and then abruptly resigned, the first pope to do so in 600 years. joseph ratzinger was born in southern germany. he was just six when

the nazis swept into power. his parents were hostile to the regime, and though their son entered junior seminary in 1939, he was forced to join the hitler youth just two years later. he and his brother george were ordained on the same day in 1951. george became a parish priest, joseph chose a quite different kind of ministry. first, a doctorate, appointments at prestigious universities, and then the vatican. a cardinal by his early 50s, an ailing popejohn paul ii made him head of the sacred congregation for the doctrine of faith, formerly the roman inquisition. there he upheld traditional catholic teaching on abortion, contraception and homosexuality. he even spoke against rock music and the harry potter books. whenjohn paul died in april 2005,

he was one of the church's longest serving cardinals and presided at the funeral. his homily, based onjesus�* instruction, follow me, proved prophetic. afterjust four ballots, white smoke from the sistine chapel announced cardinal ratzinger�*s election. habemus papam. the oldest pope for 275 years. as pope benedict xvi, he sought to re evangelize the west. it was an attempt to roll back the advance of secularism in europe and north america. but in it lay an acknowledgement of the church's declining influence in its traditional heartlands. but he also sparked controversy in 2006 when during a lecture he gave in germany, he quoted criticism of islam by a 14th century christian leader and appeared to link the religion with jihad and holy war.

there were violent protests in several muslim countries. the pope apologised and made a point of setting up the first catholic—muslim forum. he seemed chastened by the experience, and on visits like this one to britain, benedict exuded pastoral warmth and warned against marginalisation of religion. i cannot but voice my concern at the increasing marginalisation of religion, particularly of christianity, that is taking place in some quarters, even in nations which place a great emphasis on tolerance. but back in rome, the church was beginning to confront the scandal of sexual abuse by priests around the world. he was forced to deny that he'd played any role in covering up abuse. but the cases continued to mount. he later acknowledged he'd made

mistakes in handling the matter. speaks italian in february 2013, he shocked the world, announcing in february 2013, he shocked the world, announcing he would resign at the end of the month, citing age and failing health. the election of his successor, pope francis, represented a break with much of what benedict had stood for. the challenge was to find a leader who could close the widening gap between a doctrinally conservative vatican and the church worldwide. benedict bequeathed to his successor the challenges that so fatigued him, the scandal of child sexual abuse, and diminishing congregations in the west. pope benedict upheld the creeds of the church and taught them with conviction. he died as he lived, thinking and writing about how to defend and advance those creeds in an increasingly secular world.

0ur europe correspondentjoins us from saint peter's square. what has been the reaction as the news has sunkin? been the reaction as the news has sunk in? ., , been the reaction as the news has sunk in? .,, ., , been the reaction as the news has sunkin? ., , , ,, sunk in? people have been expressing their shock and _ sunk in? people have been expressing their shock and their _ sunk in? people have been expressing their shock and their sorrow. - sunk in? people have been expressing their shock and their sorrow. the - their shock and their sorrow. the square was already quite full of tourists when the news broke this morning and the bells started to toll across the vatican. we have been speaking to a number of people here, anna maria and patricia from bologna have been visiting rome. they said as soon as they heard the news of the death of the pope they rushed here to saint peter's square to pray for him. we also spoke to barbara from barcelona, she said

they learned of the news of the death of the pope here in the square. she said that she and her boyfriend were quite bewildered, it was a surreal moment, it was a sense of an unprecedented historical moment. she said nothing has happened quite like this before. i think many people now have been gathering in the square to pray for pope benedict. this is a man with a complicated legacy. there will be many who mourn him, there will be others who remember that he presided over the church at the moment where it was beginning to confront the scandal of sexual abuse by priests around the world. and that is something that pope benedict, former pope benedict admitted that he had made mistakes in handling. so a mixed picture here in rome. the vatican has _ mixed picture here in rome. the vatican has said _ mixed picture here in rome. the vatican has said that the funeral will take place on the 5th of january and will be led by pope

francis. but, there is still more details to come because, of course, this is unprecedented in that it is the first time that a sitting pope will be burying his predecessor. yes. we were speaking to the biographer of pope benedict and he said this is the first time in the 2000 year history of the church that a sitting pope will have an official burial for a sitting pope will have an official burialfor an emeritus a sitting pope will have an official burial for an emeritus pope. a sitting pope will have an official burialfor an emeritus pope. we know that francis will lead the service and that it will take on the 5th of january and that before that the body of benedict will be in the basilica of saint peters from the 2nd of january to allow the faithful to come and pay their respects to him. it's also likely that diplomats who are attached to the holy see will come to pay their respects to benedict as is former leader of the church. tributes to the pope have

been flooding in from around the world. we know that the british prime minister, rishi sunak, said that benedict was a great theologian and his thoughts were with catholics in the uk and around the world. we have also heard from the leader of germany, a la schultz, who of course is benedict's home country. he said that the world had lost a formative figure in the catholic church. a competitive personality and a great theologian. competitive personality and a great theolouian. �* . , . ~ competitive personality and a great theolouian. �* . , . theologian. bethany, thank you. i will at saint _ theologian. bethany, thank you. i will at saint peter _ theologian. bethany, thank you. i will at saint peter square. - the vatican expert, suzy hodges, joins me now from rome. suzy covered the resignation of pope benedict xvi and worked for many years for the vatican radio vatican news. thank you forjoining us. we have said the word unprecedented quite a few times but i suppose we cannot over emphasise how much we are in uncharted waters, here.— uncharted waters, here. certainly. as our uncharted waters, here. certainly. as your correspondence _ uncharted waters, here. certainly. as your correspondence side, - uncharted waters, here. certainly. | as your correspondence side, there

has been no precedent for a reigning pope to preside over the burial of his predecessor. it also, when you look back at the figure of pope benedict xvi when he was raining, he was the first pope in 600 years to resign. and that is always going to go down in history. that is probably the single event that marks his papacy. the single event that marks his -a -a . ~ the single event that marks his .aa. _ . the single event that marks his -aa- .~ ., ., , the single event that marks his papacy. we will come onto his legacy but first i papacy. we will come onto his legacy but first i want _ papacy. we will come onto his legacy but first i want to _ papacy. we will come onto his legacy but first i want to get _ papacy. we will come onto his legacy but first i want to get your _ but first i want to get your thoughts on him as a man. what are your personal recollections? he thoughts on him as a man. what are your personal recollections?- your personal recollections? he was a very gentle. _ your personal recollections? he was a very gentle, charming _ your personal recollections? he was a very gentle, charming man. - your personal recollections? he was a very gentle, charming man. he i your personal recollections? he was l a very gentle, charming man. he was a very gentle, charming man. he was a great scholar, an intellectual, i did have the privilege of meeting him at once when he came to visit vatican radio and he spoke to us, he was very cordial, he was asking us where we all came from, genuinely

interested. everybody else at the same, he was a very cordial man, a gentle man, and he will be much mourned. i gentle man, and he will be much mourned. ., , , ., mourned. i would be interested to hear what thoughts, _ mourned. i would be interested to hear what thoughts, and - mourned. i would be interested to hear what thoughts, and what - mourned. i would be interested to| hear what thoughts, and what your listeners and what your thoughts are on this mixed picture of a legacy. 0n the one hand, described by many religious leaders as one of the greatest theologians of the 20th century, but also as somebody who presided over the catholic church when there was a huge amount of scandal over child sexual abuse. what are your thoughts on that and also interesting to hear if it is something that your listeners ever were in touch about? he something that your listeners ever were in touch about?— were in touch about? he certainly had a difficult _ were in touch about? he certainly had a difficult papacy. _ were in touch about? he certainly had a difficult papacy. as - were in touch about? he certainly

had a difficult papacy. as you - were in touch about? he certainlyl had a difficult papacy. as you said, child sexual abuse scandals dogged much of his time, especially in the latter years. much of his time, especially in the latteryears. but much of his time, especially in the latter years. but it has to be said that he helped to jump—start the process to discipline or defrocked these predator priests. compared to his predecessor, he was quite... he was very much quoted for a speech he made following the death of the previous pope when he said how much filth there is within the church. that was a speech that raised eyebrows but was very prophetic. as you said, these child sexual abuse scandals hounded his papacy and also in the year before he resigned his pgpgcy in the year before he resigned his papacy was shaken by this scandal called the vatican vati—leaks where

leaked documents showed fighting internally and general dysfunction at the heart of the church. in fact, in october of that year, a vatican court found benedict's former butler lt of stealing sensitive documents and he was sentenced to prison. he was later pardoned, though. we will leave it there. _ was later pardoned, though. we will leave it there. thank _ was later pardoned, though. we will leave it there. thank you _ was later pardoned, though. we will leave it there. thank you for - was later pardoned, though. we will leave it there. thank you for your i leave it there. thank you for your thoughts and for speaking to us. here in the uk — we've had a tribute from the archbishop of canterbury. earlier i spoke to vincent nichols, cardinal of the roman catholic church and archbishop of westminster. i met pope benedict on quite a number of occasions, but i think my memories centre, most of all, around his visit to the united kingdom in 2011 when, in a way, i was, from the church

point of view, his host, particularly when he was in london. i think he came to england with an immediate reputation of being god's rottweiler! but i think he left with a sense of him being everybody�*s favourite great—uncle, orjust uncle, because he was a kind, considerate, highly intelligent and sensitive man. and it was always a pleasure to be in his company even if difficult issues had to be talked about. one of the ways you described him in a post that you put on twitter was talking about his gentleness that's a feature that other people have remembered him for, as well, and that seems to be the way that many have categorised him. you just mentioned right at the end there, some of the difficult issues during his time, so perhaps it is the right moment to talk about his legacy, then, because of course, on the one hand he has been described by the archbishop of canterbury, just one

of the tributes that has come through, in the past few minutes, the archbishop of canterbury, justin welby, said that he was one of the greatest theologians of his age, but of course, during his time, it was a period of scandal and controversy and allegations of abuse among the catholic church. so it was quite a mixed legacy, really, wasn't it? well, he lived through a very tumultuous period as pope. but i think it important to remember that before he was elected pope he was in charge of the doctrinal section of the holy seat which had responsibility for issues to do with sexual abuse committed by priests. he was the one who set in motion what some people like to call zero tolerance. so he personally was responsible for the leicisation of over 400 priests around the world once

a proper due process had been done. he carried that burden, which was a considerable burden, but not the burden that the victims themselves carry. i think the two other things that i will remember him for, one would be, as archbishopjustin says, he was without a doubt one of the most erudite and yet accessible theologians of the last century. his two books onjesus and nazareth confronted some of the deepest scriptural issues, and yet presented the person ofjesus in a very accessible way. i think the third thing i would mention would be, coming out of the background through which he lived in, germany, central europe, more than any other pope, he understood and esteemed the importance of democracy, but he also was able to challenge democracy to see how it

needs a relationship between what he called the world of reason and the world of faith. so he said, when he was in this country, in 2010 actually, that faith in god is not a problem to solve but it is a resource to be discovered again. so those three things, his struggle with the terrible scandal and hurt caused by clerical sexual abuse, his status as a theologian, and his understanding of the role of religion in a particularly european context. john allen is editor of crux which covers the vatican and the catholic church. he's written two books about pope benedict xv1 — and met him. he describes what he was like.

on a personal level, benedict was by far the most shy, the most humble, the most, sort of, self—deprecating, and gentlest of the three. i don't know that i have ever known a public figure where the disjunction between his public reputation... that is, as this draconian, authoritarian, aloof, darth vader—esque figure, and the private man, that those of us who knew him personally, and knew him well, i have never known anybody for whom the distinction was quite as sharp as it was with benedict xvi, which is why, in many ways, for me, his legacy will be the legacy of a man who was tragically misunderstood. the world health organization says chinese officials must share more real—time information on covid in the country as infections surge. many of the country's strict restrictions have been lifted over the last few weeks,

but cases have soared and several countries are now screening travellers from china. officials at the who want to see more data on hospitalisations, intensive care unit admissions and deaths. the uk is one of the countries that has now announced it will introduce new covid checks for people arriving on flights to england from china. from next thurday, travellers will have to provide a negative test before boarding their flight from china. some random testing will be carried out on arrivals in england. 0ur political correspondent, leila nathoo, is here. it feels like a shift in government thinking — what's changed? what has come to the fore is those concerns around the transparency when it comes to china and covid. whether we have an accurate picture of what is going on in terms of the scale and seriousness of the cases they are and whether there are any signs of a new variant circulating in china as those numbers soar. that is the key concern of ministers here. i think there has been a shift

because earlier in the week there was a line from government ministers here saying the situation was being kept under review, there were thinking that there wasn't yet the evidence to act to warrant in bringing those testing equipment. there is quite a lot of confidence in the immunity of the population here in the uk. but i think now of those concerns have come to the fore around how accurate the picture is from china that we are getting, so they are stressing that these are time—limited, it isjust they are stressing that these are time—limited, it is just a precaution, but in the uk they are the first new set of code measures to be brought in for many months, since the spring when most covered measures were relaxed. i think we are going to start seeing a reopening of those debates we had previously run code measures, how effective they are, how to decisive they are, how the government is being precise in their decision—making measures. some breaking news and ukrainian officials say russia has launched more than a dozen missiles targeting cities across the country, in its latest wave of attacks.

a number of explosions have been heard in the capital, kyiv. the city's mayor, vitaliy klitschko, says several districts have been hit, and that according to preliminary reports one person has been killed and several others injured. let's bring you now some pictures from sydney, australia where new year's celebrations are taking place. this is the scene at the harbourjust moments ago. fireworks have been dazzling crowds gathered to celebrate the first restriction—free party since covid struck. the queen guitarist, brian may, and members of england's womens' football team, the lionnesses, are among those celebrated in the uk's new year's honours list, which hasjust been made public. senior diplomats who led britain's response to the war in ukraine have also been recognised,

as lizo mzimba reports. brian may, on top of the palace and now feeling on top of the world — the guitarist and animal welfare campaigner knighted notjust for services to music but for his charity work too. i do feel that this is notjust a kind of reward or a gong, this is a kind of licence and a kind of commission to carry on doing what i'm doing. and it gives me a bit more power to my elbow, so i'm very happy about that. a fellow campaigner, virginia mckenna, becomes a dame for her work with wildlife — work that was ignited when she appeared in the film born free. and artist grayson perry says he's surprised and humbled to be knighted. other well—known figures honoured include anne diamond, whose long standing campaign to help prevent cot death is thought to have saved the lives of thousands of babies.

she becomes an 0be, as do actors stephen graham and david harewood and illustrator david sutherland, who's drawn some of the beano's best known characters for 60 years. becoming mbes, countdown star and campaigner rachel riley, for her work on holocaust education, lissie harper — widow of pc andrew harper — for her campaign to bring in automatic life sentences for anyone killing an emergency worker while committing a crime, and comedian, actor and presenter frank skinner for services to the entertainment industry... while janet kay, known as the queen of lover's rock, says she's deeply honoured to be made an mbe. # to play your silly games... her single silly games was one of the defining songs of the 1970s. most people being honoured never expected to be in the public eye — people like louenna hood, a nanny who organised supplies

and raised tens of thousands of pounds for people fleeing ukraine. she receives a british empire medal. how does it feel to be honoured like this? i mean, it'sjust absolutely amazing. and i think, because we've had a bit of a gap and i'm able to look back and reminisce, it is incredible what you can do in such a short amount of time. i think if i'd planned it, it would never have happened, but we just... we just went with it and, yeah, it was amazing. just one of the many being recognised for making a difference to others. lizo mzimba, bbc news. a reminder of our top story... the former pope, benedict the sixteenth, has died in the vatican, almost a decade after he stood down because of ailing health. he was ninety— five. bornjoseph ratzinger in germany, benedict led the roman catholic church for nearly eight years before becoming the first pope in six centuries to resign.

good afternoon. it is certainly not a straight forward end to 2022 weather—wise. some places have already seen a lot of rain and some flooding. there is more rain in the outlook, but also across parts of scotland, the risk of some snow, a combination which could cause some disruption. so what we have through the rest of the day is outbreaks of rain across many parts of england and wales, some for northern ireland, too. northern scotland seeing some wintry showers, bringing accumulations of snow in places, some icy stretches. temperatures in northern scotland really struggling, whereas further south, it's a very different story, really mild at 15 degrees in london. and then tonight, the wet weather pushes further northwards, running into the cold air, giving the threat of some snow in places. this is how things are likely

to look at midnight. we will continue to see some strong winds around some coasts of england and wales, but it's going to be a mixture of clear spells and the odd shower here, wet, though, for northern ireland, the far north of england and southern scotland, and over the southern uplands and maybe over higher spots in the central belt, we could see some snow starting to develop. ice likely to be an issue in the north of scotland. and then through the nights, this band of rain and snow, most of the snow over high ground, but perhaps some to low levels at times will continue to affect southern and central parts of scotland. that could make for some poor travelling conditions if you're heading home from new year celebrations, a very mild night in the south of the uk, a very cold one in the far north. and then for tomorrow this band of rain and snow will really get stuck across scotland. it's more likely to be rain in eastern scotland, but some snow further west, but a cloud and some rain into northern ireland for northern england and wales will see some showers and increasing amounts of cloud down towards the south and the east of england,

temperatures north to south, 4 to 13 degrees. now, as we look ahead to monday, we may see some rain grazing the south east corner at times and some showers up towards the western side of scotland. but in between, actually a decent amount of dry weather, some spells of sunshine, but feeling slightly chillier than it has done of late, 3 to 9 degrees. and then as we head deeper into the new week, we see further frontal systems pushing in from the atlantic. further outbreaks of rain could be some quite strong winds at times as well, quite mild through the middle part of the week. but later in the week, it may start to turn a little colder.

this is bbc world news. the headlines: the bells toll in st peter's square as the vatican announces the former pope, benedict xvi, has died at the age of 95. his body will lie in state in st peter's basilica from monday. pope benedict led the catholic church for nearly eight years until, in 2013, he became the first pope in 600 years to resign, due to ill health. new covid rules for people arriving in england from china. travellers will need to provide a negative test result. world health officials call on beijing to share accurate coronavirus data. queen guitarist brian may and members of england's women's football team are among those celebrated in the uk's new year's honours list.

over 1,000 people have recieved recognition for their service.